text:
After all the waiting and distribution questions surrounding Warhawk, the game is finally available: either in retail for $60 with a Bluetooth headset or by way of the PlayStation Store for $40. Regardless of which version you buy, you're getting what amounts to not only the best multiplayer title on the system, but also one of the best open-battlefield shooters to date.
On paper, Warhawk looks to be nothing more than another Shadowrun. There's no single player campaign: only local and online multiplayer. And though there's split-screen, Warhawk doesn't include bots. There are only five maps—even less maps than Shadowrun shipped with. However, in depth, scale, and price, Warhawk truly outclasses FASA Studio's failed shooter.
Warhawk is a fast-paced, arcade-style, third-person, open-battlefield shooter where the player can fight on foot, in vehicles, or in aircraft. There are four play modes: the staple deathmatch and team deatchmatch, a large-scale version of capture the flag, and the push-and-pull territorial warfare familiar to those who've played what Battlefield or Battlefront called "zones."
Though there are only a handful of different maps, the sheer scale of each one is amazing; some are over 5 square virtual miles. Vehicles, at that point, become a necessity. In addition, each map has numerous different configurations based on user selection and the number of players in a given game, which keeps things fresh.
Ground combat is the standard fare, though the weapon balance is certainly the highlight. The optional SixAxis control for the vehicles is nice, though hardly a necessity. While the game features all the weapons and ground vehicles we've seen in other multiplayer games, to win consistently you'll need to use air support: the titular Warhawk.
Aerial combat is where the game really shines. Though there are a ton of different modes and map settings to alter the play-style of a given game, I found myself returning to Dogfighting—a deathmatch variant using only planes—again and again simply because the SixAxis control is phenomenal; control proved to be incredibly responsive after twiddling with the sensitivity options slightly, and I now find myself capable of some rather extraordinary maneuvers. Most importantly, it just feels good—even if it looks ridiculous. Simply put, this is the game that proves the SixAxis does indeed work and can work well.
The learning curve of the game—especially in the air—is extremely steep. Lack of a tutorial and a rather sparse manual does little to help. The only way to learn in this case is by doing. This is the kind of humbling experience that some may be put off by. I'm used to doing extremely well in online shooters, but I was quickly put into my place and have yet to recover to any significant degree. This game is hard. Part of that difficulty stems from the controls. Aerial combat utilizes both analog sticks and the SixAxis tilting for plane control, which proves to be daunting at first, although extremely effective with practice. It may take a few days, but eventually you'll begin to master the nuances of your craft and learn how to use the air power-sliding and free-form stunt maneuvers to dodge locked swarm missiles or deftly ambush an unsuspecting enemy.
While the gameplay of soldiers on foot being backed by players in the air is incredibly solid, there is one significant issue that puts a damper on the game entirely. Currently, the ranking system is broken. Apparently, there have been bugs with the system which have caused player progress to be constantly erased. The team at Incognito is working on the issue but, until its sorted out, the game's rank-dependent unlockable content—paint jobs, custom clothing, and so forth—is currently inaccessible. As ranking is one of the one and only progression element for the game, this is a huge problem, and the last two patches pushed out to address this rank issue have not been successful.
Ultimately, Warhawk is a stellar title that suffers from only one really significant issue. The game's finely-tuned balance, complex and intricate maps and variants, and phenomenal presentation make Warhawk a title that you'll play not for days or weeks, but months and potentially even years. The online play is seamless and performs well; thanks in no small part to the excellent servers. If Incognito can get the ranking working in the near future, I see no reason why Warhawk wouldn't be a must-buy title for anyone but the most staunch anti-Battlefield gamers.
Verdict: Tentative "Buy" pending patch
System: PlayStation 3
Price: $60 retail disc with Bluetooth headset, $40.00 via download
Rating: Teen
Developer: Incognito
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Other recent reviews:


text:
Product Description
- Collapses in seconds! Just unzip it, unsnap it, and fold it up!
- No need to remove and store side panels.
- Removes completely from vehicle in seconds, and is small enough to store in tight places.
- Light enough for one person to operate and lift: 28 lbs.
- Quick, efficient online ordering & delivery!
- Ships right to your home or business for just $50.53.
- Installation; average installation time: 40 minutes.
- Roll-up canopy side panels and/or rear window for easy access.
- Large vinyl windows provide complete visibilty throughout vehicle. Available in Clear or Dark Tint!
- 2-Ply Laminated PVC coated Sailcloth.
- Same fabric used by most major auto manufacturers for convertible tops.
- Uses heavy duty #10 YKK zippers.
- Available in 3 Colors: Black, Grey, and Tan.
- Waterproof.
- UV Stabilization to resist fading.
- Proven against mildew and rot.
- 4 Season Fabric; No need to remove during snowy winters.
- Easy to clean by hand with soap/water/Wolfstein's RaggTop clear or by carwash.
- Looks great for years!
- Replaceable rear window panels.
- Folding frame made from lightweight clear anodized aluminum tubing.
- Easy to remove from vehicle completely.
- Weather stripping provides waterproofing for entire Softopper.
- All parts individually replaceable.
- Protective Boot Cover to increase longevity and provide easy storage. **Must be installed when driving with Softopper in reward retracted postion.
Original & Industry Leading Manufacturer of the Pick-Up Truck Soft Top!
Made in America: Boulder, Colorado since 2000
Everything Included in one order!
Canopy is of the highest durability:
Frame is made from durable, anti-rust aluminum and zinc-coated steel:
Accessories Included:
Free Industry Leading Warranty
Additional Information
Additional Information
|Installation Instructions

subset: commoncrawl


text:
And the "ceasefire" continuous.
Al-Jazeera: Syrian forces killed 66 people Monday, activists say (April 23)
Regime forces killed at least 28 civilians with heavy gunfire in the central city of Hama on Monday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. (April 23)
"Déjà Failed!
Another monitoring mission, another set of people from all over the world making excuses, trying to explain the unexplainable and getting frustrated and fired upon to boot. When will the world follow a plan that makes sense. To the world we say: Give us what we need to get the mission accomplished, not what you need to feel good about yourselves."
Ammar Abduhamid a liberal democracy activist
To really show the absurdity of this UN "ceasefire" and their observers:
Two UN observers come under sniper fire from Assad's forces in Homs April 21 and had to take cover and the civilian population protected the UN observers. The same civilian population that these UN observers were supposed to "protect"
That what I call a ceasefire a la UN!
I therefore suggest to the UN Security Council a new resolution with a "new" UN observation team that will "protect and observe the first team of observers".
There are many videos showing this, here are two:
04/21/12 Assad's Snipers shoot at UN Monitors in Homs
And here is a news story about it:
UN delegation of the 'terrified' in Syria
"We saw the Free Syrian Army (FSA) protecting the Blue Berets, particularly in Homs, where the head of the observer mission, Col. Ahmed Himmiche, was present."
"A YouTube video-clip has appeared showing the international monitors being targeted and shot at by forces belonging to the tyrant of Damascus, whilst members of the FSA formed a human barrier to protect them as they were beset by panic. Indeed this video-clip shows one FSA member protecting one of the international monitors from gunfire, reassuring him by saying "don't be afraid!" Of course, anybody who views this YouTube video-clip understand the extent of the irony inherent in this situation, and as the saying goes, the worst disaster is the one that brings laughter, particularly when we are looking at a UN monitoring delegation transform into a delegation of the "terrified."
This represents a clear insult from the Assad regime toward the UN and international community, particularly as the targeting of this delegation took place on the same day that the UN Security Council took the decision to send more monitors to Syria! So after all of this, can we say that there is any expected benefit from sending international monitors to Syria? There can be no doubt that this is completely out of the question.
Assad's shelling of Homs, Deraa, Hama and other cities is ongoing, and Syrian people are being killed on a daily basis, so after all of this how can we say that the delegation of international monitors will play an effective role, or confirm Assad's compliance with the Annan initiative? The targeting of the international observers, and their being subject to gunfire in Homs, means that Assad has taken aim at Annan's initiative, and this means that we cannot rely on this initiative, or wait another three months — which is the timeframe provided for the observer mission by the UN initiative — for Assad did not even wait a few days for his forces to fire upon the delegation of the "terrified."
What is funny is that Washington is claiming that its patience has run out, and that it will not renew the observer mission in 90-days, in other words Washington has already begun to negotiate — from today — about renewing the observer mission, which should end in 3 months! This is the true definition of absurdity, whilst it also makes light of the Syrian blood that has been shed non-stop over the past 12 months, particularly as this delegation of the "terrified" — on Friday — refused to monitor the scene, despite the huge anti-Assad demonstrations taking place, with the head of the observer mission saying that his team would not undertake any field trips for fear that "our presence is used for escalation."
Is this a joke? Must the FSA now also protect the international delegation of the "terrified" from the Assad forces? It is clear that the international delegation of the "terrified" will not accelerate or delay anything in Syria, particularly at their current level, therefore the Emir of Qatar was right when he said that the Annan initiative has only a 3 percent chance of success!
What everybody must be aware of is the fact that Assad only understands the language of force; anything other than this is nothing more than a license to kill, a waste of time and a deepening of the Syrian crisis."
And these UN observers WILL NOT "OBSERVE" on Fridays when most of the protests are! Another glorious example of this great UN "ceasefire".
"Col. Ahmed Himmiche, the Moroccan officer heading the advance team of United Nations observers in Syria, was quoted as telling reporters in Damascus that they would avoid Friday patrols, a statement that confirmed suspicions of many who have experienced the brunt of government oppression that the mission would be toothless. "We don't want to be used as a tool for escalating the situation," he said.
Those remarks were met with some disbelief, particularly in Damascus, where antigovernment protesters said they faced arrest, bullets, tear gas and a wide deployment of government security forces trying to suppress their demonstrations — all violations of the supposed cease-fire plan. One point of the six-point peace plan negotiated under United Nations auspices is that Syrians be allowed to demonstrate freely.
"I have no hope in the monitors; if they don't tour on Fridays, why did they come to Syria?" said Yaser, 30, a protester in Jober, not far from downtown Damascus, where an attack by government thugs wounded demonstrators. "For us nothing is changed — we are demonstrating, the Assad forces are killing and the monitors are watching." Demonstrators in Homs, which has endured more than two months of shelling, were more sarcastic. At the beginning of every video from a demonstration, someone off camera held up a piece of paper indicating the place and the date. One from Homs on Friday in Arabic and slightly mangled English read: "Dear Observer. We are waiting. Note: Homs is a city in Syria (can u come please?").
Abu Omar, 28, an activist reached by telephone, said sardonically that perhaps the Syrian government no longer considered the city part of the country since it evidently had no intention of respecting the cease-fire there or of withdrawing its forces, as the peace plan specifies. "Tanks are still deployed in every corner of the city, and checkpoints are everywhere," he said. "So what is the meaning of this cease-fire?"
And of course, the shelling continues as usual during this "ceasefire":
Just two out of many videos showing this continued destruction:
Syria, Homs city: Violent Shelling on Khaldiyeh area by the regime army
04/20/12 Syria Homs shelled despite ceasefire
Satellite images reveal ruined deserted Homs
"Government forces' continued shelling of the Syrian city of Homs has left some neighbourhoods unrecognisable.
Satellite images taken this Mach reveal a deserted city centre, destroyed areas and heavy deployment of tanks across the city.
This contracts to the images shot in August, which showed a busy city of around a million. The latest imagery, commissioned by Al Jazeera, provides a snapshot of what appears to be an increasingly dire situation. "
Remember that in Part 1 I wrote "But for the most part, most of the army stays out of this. They have "defected in place" And one example I gave was from Golan:
"From division level down to battalions and brigades level. Entire units from commander down defy orders from the General Staff in Damascus to fight the rebels without crossing the lines to the opposition. To keep the spreading passive mutiny, Assad keeps the defiant units supplied in their barracks with funds and food.
Another example of this passive mutiny by the Syrian army, was when the five Syrian divisions stationed on Syria's Golan border with Israel and its frontier with South Lebanon; were told by their commanders in beginning of March to ignore orders from Damascus to join the crackdown on rebels because their mission was "to defend the Syrian homeland from external threats" – another form of "defection in place."
Well it seems that the situation has gotten worse, according to Israeli sources. Since Assad now have diverted food and supplies from these army units to his militia:
"The wretched plight of the troops manning Syrian defense divisions defending the Golan border and Mt.Hermon was clearly visible from lookout points on the Israeli side in the last two days. The regular water and food supplies to their bases, the backbone of Syria's defense lines against Israel, were stopped and redirected to the units fighting anti-Assad rebels in other parts of the country. Large groups of armed soldiers have gone AWOL to hunt for food. For the first time in years, some have approached the border fence. They don't ask Israeli soldiers for food, but parcels thrown across the fence vanish in a trice.
The 5th Division posted in the Golan town of Quneitra has suffered the largest number of desertions, estimated at more than 1,500 officers and men, around 15 percent of the full complement. But hundreds of dropouts occur daily from the 15th, 9th and 7th Divisions stationed in central and southern Golan.
The district commands have meanwhile lost control of the Syrian-Israeli border deployment. Military facilities are deserted with no one to guard against trespassers. Gangs, local and from across Syria's eastern borders with Jordan and Iraq, were quick to realize the bases are unguarded and have begun stripping them of equipment and looting everything they can lay hands on."
"For them the palaces, for us the coffins."
And it seems that slowly the disaffection with Assad is growing among his main internal support the Alawites:
Disaffection, fear growing among Syria's Alawites
"DAMASCUS // In the Alawite heartlands of Latakia and the mountainous rural hinterlands surrounding the city, the regime of President Bashar Al Assad still commands overwhelming support, buttressed by patronage networks and deeply entrenched fears of sectarian bloodshed.
But activists in the region say there are signs disaffection with Al Assad family rule is slowly spreading among those outside of privileged elite circles, a discord encapsulated in a new slogan, increasingly heard among ordinary Alawites: "For them the palaces, for us the coffins."
"People are saying, 'how long will we have to bear this', more and more army families are wondering what they are sacrificing their children for, they are starting to say 'where are the martyrs from the Assad family?'," said an Alawite activist from Latakia, a once bustling port and tourist resort on Syria's verdant Mediterranean coastline.
Another influential Alawite opposition figure from a village in the Alawite mountains said dissent had become more pronounced since January, when an elderly Alawite widow buried her son, a soldier killed in the uprising. She had lost her husband and father in conflicts during the 1970s and 1980s under the former president Hafez Al Assad.
"She stood at the funeral and said: 'You Assads have taken my whole family, and all for nothing,'" the activist said. "People sympathised with her. Since then there have been similar sentiments at other funerals – not all of them, but some of them, people are becoming angry, the pressure is rising."
Nonetheless even opposition figures in the region acknowledge most of Syria's Alawites – members of the same obscure Shiite sect as Mr Al Assad and his ruling faction – continue to side with the regime.
"Ninety per cent of the Alawite community in Latakia and the villages support Assad, either because they have direct interests with the regime or because they are terrified," said a leading Alawite dissident.
"Alawites believe they are facing a jihad by Sunni extremists who are coming to chop off their heads, they are really sacred of that."
"The regime has convinced the minorities it is their protector and it has succeeded in neutralising the Alawites though fear, through linking their destiny to the regime's," said a Christian protester from Latakia city.
"For that reason, the majority [in Latakia] are not involved in the revolution, while they are in many other places, if you go to Hama you have no doubt the revolution will win, but in Latakia it is like a different world compared to the rest of Syria," he said.
Demonstrations, typically involving 100 to 150 young protesters and lasting up to 15 minutes, have stubbornly persisted in Latakia city, although they are confined to a few neighbourhoods and outlying villages, all where Sunnis are in the majority.
To keep public protests at that low level, security forces have been deployed in strength throughout much of the city. Activists say it takes just minutes for dozens of security cars to arrive at the scene of any dissent.
The Ramel neighbourhood, an impoverished Sunni ghetto that was assaulted by security units in August, remains sealed off by heavily fortified checkpoints.
In the heart of Latakia, the school where Hafez Al Assad was educated has been shut down and garrisoned by the army, with hundreds of soldiers and plainclothes security officers on hand to prevent it – or the statue of the former president standing on a plinth outside – from being defaced by opposition activists.
While the regime needs to hold Damascus and Aleppo if it is to remain in power, Latakia, as an unofficial capital for Syria's Alawites, is just as important.
"The regime hasn't reached the point where it feels it is losing in Latakia yet, but it is not comfortable. It is working hard to keep the control it has," said a local doctor who has been supporting protests.
A protest organiser from the city, a 40-year-old engineer, said the opposition was similarly working hard to keep going under immense pressure, including widespread detentions and pervasive surveillance of activists.
"We were weakened by the arrests but we have reorganised and adapted," he said.
As with other parts of Syria, numerous activists in Latakia confirmed an increasing tendency among anti-regime groups to favour taking up weapons, and they reported growing activity by the Free Syrian Army, including raids made from rural areas into the heart of the city to help soldiers trying to defect.
"The regime is weakening slowly, it is breaking up like an iceberg," said another grassroots activist in the region. "But as it has become harder to have peaceful demonstrations, the armed opposition has become stronger and everyone is saying the same thing now – a peaceful uprising alone is not going to topple this regime."
A protester from Ramel, a 23-year-old Sunni, said he would stop peaceful demonstrations and join the armed opposition if it were being supplied with weapons from the West or Arab states.
"It is our right to carry arms and to defend ourselves, don't blame us if that is what we do," said the protester, whose father and brothers have been arrested and held for months and who was himself detained for 50 days. "We want any foreign air force over the skies of Syria to protect us from this regime, let them bomb the presidential palace, we would make a pact with the devil if he could help us get rid of the regime."
"In the beginning I used to say there was no way a civil war could happen here, that the Syrian people would not do that but after one year, we cannot keep saying the same thing. What we saw in Homs [sectarian violence] is a worry because we have the same mix of sects here in Latakia," the Christian activist said.
The young Sunni protester echoed that alarm. "I'm afraid of a civil war with the Alawites," he said. "They have been fooled by the regime into taking its side and when the regime feels it has reached its end they will murder a lot of people in Latakia, there will be a lot of violence."
A seasoned Alawite dissident gave an equally bleak assessment of the region's, and Syria's, immediate prospects. "We will be dragged into a civil war by this regime, it will be like the Balkans, it will be Bosnia all over again."
Arab League
There is a lot to be said about the Arab League and what is has done or mostly not done in the region. This post thou are about what the Arab League has done or not done regarding the civilian uprising inSyria.
A short background and timeline:
On November 3 2011, the Syrian government accepted an Arab League peace plan to halt its crackdown on protesters. The ceasefire quickly broke down, as government forces continued their suppression of protests. From 2 to12 November 2011, more than 250 people were killed.
The peace plan – to allow foreign observers from the Arab League to monitor Syria's progress in removing troops from protest areas, free political prisoners and negotiate with dissidents.
On December 19, Syria agreed to the Arab League peace plan, agreeing to let observers into the country.
On December 26, 67Arab League monitors arrive in Syria.
On January 22 2012 Saudi Arabia withdraws from the Syrian observers mission.
On January 24 Gulf Arab states announce that they are withdrawing from the Arab League's observer mission in Syria.
On January 28 The Arab League suspends the monitoring mission due to "the critical deterioration of the situation" .
Arab League suspends Syria mission as violence rages
"Reuters) – The Arab League suspended its monitoring mission in Syria on Saturday because of worsening violence, a move Damascus said was an attempt to draw foreign intervention as it struggles to quell a 10-month revolt against President Bashar al-Assad's rule.
The Arab League took the decision days after calling, unsuccessfully, for Assad to step down and make way for a government of national unity. It will take an Arab peace plan to the U.N. Security Council next week.
"Given the critical deterioration of the situation in Syria and the continued use of violence … it has been decided to immediately stop the work of the Arab League's mission to Syria pending presention of the issue to the league's council," Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby said in a statement."
UN resolution proposal
On January 31, the Arab League asked the UN Security Council to adopt a resolution, based on the League's action plan for Syria, including a call for Assad to step down. Yet, on February 4, the resolution was vetoed by China and Russia.
Eventually, a non-binding resolution by the UN General Assembly was endorsed, with China and Russia voting against. The UN General Assembly resolution has no legal force, unlike the UN Security Council.
So the as always very "helpful" Russians and Chinese even voted against a non-binding resolution by the UN General Assembly. Just to show who is in control. They could have abstained but they didn't want to "risk" anything.
So much for the Arab League peace plan.
"Arab observers- All the claims about Syria are lies. We saw nothing"
And who in their wisdom did the Arab League chose to lead the mission and obsevers in Syria?
The Sudanese general Mustafa al-Dabi.
Just a short reminder here that the Assad regime and Sudanese president Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir are "buddies". And general Mustafa al-Dabi has been very close and loyal to president Al-Bashir
A short background general's Dabi's career:
1989 – Chief of military intelligence
1995- Chief of Sudan's foreign intelligence agency
1996 – Deputy chief of General Staff
2000 – Ambassador to Qatar
2005 – Commissioner of security arrangements in Darfur ceasefire monitoring committee
Syria mission a diplomatic coup for Sudan
"This has dismayed human rights groups, with Amnesty International warning that it could threaten the credibility of the entire mission.
"The Arab League's decision to appoint as the head of the observer mission a Sudanese general on whose watch severe human rights violations were committed in Sudan risks undermining the League's efforts so far and seriously calls into question the mission's credibility," it said in a statement.
Gen Dabi served as head of the Sudanese directorate of military intelligence when Mr Bashir seized power in a coup in 1989 – a period marked by "arbitrary arrest and detention, enforced disappearance and torture", Amnesty says.
Syrian opposition activists say they have little faith in the Arab League's initiative His name was also linked with the summary trials and execution of 28 army officers who mounted a failed coup attempt against Mr Bashir in April 1990, an anti-government Sudanese news site, Alrakoba, reports."
Syrian opposition groups have also expressed concern about Gen Dabi's strong military background.
"He won't be neutral, and would sympathise with those in similar positions, thus it won't be surprising if he supports and sympathises with the Syrian regime and its henchmen who are committing crimes against humanity round the clock in Syria," said the head of the Syrian League, Abd-al-Karim al-Rayhawi."
Activists alarmed over Sudanese head of Syria mission
"(Reuters) – The choice of a Sudanese general to head an Arab League mission in Syria has alarmed opposition activists who say Sudan's own defiance of a war crimes tribunal means the monitors probably won't recommend strong action against Syria's Bashar al-Assad.
But some critics of Khartoum say it is all but impossible to imagine a Sudanese general ever recommending strong outside intervention, much less an international tribunal, to respond to human rights abuses in a fellow Arab state.
Eric Reeves, a professor at Smith College in Massachusetts, who studies Sudan and has written strong criticisms of its government, said the choice of a Sudanese general was a sign the Arab League might not want its monitors to produce findings that would force it to take stronger action.
"There is a broader question of why you would pick someone to lead this investigation … when he is part of an army that is guilty of precisely the sort of crimes that are being investigated in Syria," Reeves said.
"I think a Sudanese general would be one of the least likely people in the world to acknowledge these findings even if they are right there before him… It doesn't make any sense unless you want to shape the finding. They want it shaped in ways that will minimize the obligation to do more than they already have."
Syrian opposition activists are reluctant to publicly criticize a monitoring mission in which they have invested high hopes. But several have privately voiced concern over whether a Sudanese military man would be willing or able to take a hard stance towards Assad."
Amnesty International said Sudan's military intelligence, at the time Dabi led it, "was responsible for the arbitrary arrest and detention, enforced disappearance, and torture or other ill-treatment of numerous people in Sudan."
"The Arab League's decision to appoint as the head of the observer mission a Sudanese general on whose watch severe human rights violations were committed in Sudan risks undermining the League's efforts so far and seriously calls into question the mission's credibility."
"Jehanne Henry, Sudan researcher at New York-based Human Rights Watch, said that as head of Sudan's military intelligence in the 1990s, Dabi "certainly would have been in a position to know what the security services were doing at that time."
"As we and others have documented in reports from that period, the security services were implicated in serious human rights violations such as the arbitrary arrest and detention of political activists and their ill treatment and torture.…"
She said rebel leaders had accused Dabi of violations in Darfur, although Dabi was not one of the figures Human Rights Watch had linked to specific abuse documented in its research.
"He obviously does not fit the profile as a human rights monitor," she added."
"But that will not be enough to persuade rights groups. Omer Ismail from the Enough Project, an anti-genocide campaign organized by the influential U.S. think-tank the Center for American Progress, said the choice of Dabi was "perplexing."
"Instead of heading a team entrusted with a probe of alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity by Syria, the general should be investigated by the ICC for evidence of similar crimes in Sudan," Ismail said in a statement.
"When he served as Sudan's former head of Military Intelligence, and when he oversaw implementation of the Darfur Security Arrangement, alleged war crimes including genocide were committed on his watch."
And his direct involvement in the Darfur genocide by the Arab Janjaweed:
(In Darfur the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court says the army carried out war crimes and the United Nations says 300,000 people may have died. Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir has been indicted by the Hague-based International Criminal Court for genocide and crimes against humanity.)
The World's Worst Human Rights Observer.
"As Arab League monitors work to expose President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown, the head of the mission is a Sudanese general accused of creating the fearsome "janjaweed," which was responsible for the worst atrocities during the Darfur genocide.
"I am going to Homs," insisted Sudanese Gen. Mohammad Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi, the head of the Arab League observer mission, telling reporters that so far the Assad regime had been "very cooperative."
But Dabi may be the unlikeliest leader of a humanitarian mission the world has ever seen. He is a staunch loyalist of Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for genocide and crimes against humanity for his government's policies in Darfur. And Dabi's own record in the restive Sudanese region, where he stands accused of presiding over the creation of the feared Arab militias known as the "janjaweed," is enough to make any human rights activist blanch.
Dabi's involvement in Darfur began in 1999, four years before the region would explode in the violence that Secretary of State Colin Powell labeled as "genocide." Darfur was descending into war between the Arab and Masalit communities — the same fault line that would widen into a bloodier interethnic war in a few years' time. As the situation escalated out of control, Bashir sent Dabi to Darfur to restore order.
According to Julie Flint and Alex De Waal's Darfur: A New History of a Long War, Dabi arrived in Geneina, the capital of West Darfur, on Feb. 9, 1999, with two helicopter gunships and 120 soldiers. He would stay until the end of June. During this time, he would make an enemy of the Masalit governor of West Sudan. Flint and De Waal write:
Governor Ibrahim Yahya describes the period as 'the beginning of the organization of the Janjawiid', with [Arab] militia leaders like Hamid Dawai and Shineibat receiving money from the government for the first time. 'The army would search and disarm villages, and two days later the Janjawiid would go in. They would attack and loot from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., only ten minutes away from the army. By this process all of Dar Masalit was burned.'
Yahya's account was supported five years later by a commander of the Sudan Liberation Army, a rebel organization movement in the region. "[T]hings changed in 1999," he told Flint and De Waal. "The PDF [Popular Defense Forces, a government militia] ended and the Janjawiid came; the Janjawiid occupied all PDF places."
"[T]he army command finds the militia useful and fearsome in equal measure," De Waal said. "So al-Dabi's regularization of the Arab militia served both to rein them in, but also to legitimize their activities and retain them as a future strike force."
Dabi's role in Darfuris only one episode in a decades-long career that has been spent protecting the interests of Bashir's regime. He has regularly been trusted with authority over the regime's most sensitive portfolios: The day Bashir took power in a coup in 1989, he was promoted to head of military intelligence. In August 1995, after protesters at Khartoum University rattled the regime, Dabi became head of Sudan's foreign intelligence agency — pushing aside a loyalist of Hassan al-Turabi, the hard-line Islamist cleric who helped Bashir rise to power but would be pushed aside several years later. And as civil war ravaged south Sudan, Dabi was tasked from 1996 to 1999 as chief of Sudan's military operations. "
Doesn't this sound like the prefect qualifications for leading a mission observing human rights violations?
And after this "promising" selection what happened during this mission? Well, surprise, surprise:
Arab League observers see 'nothing frightening' in Syria hotspot
"Campaigners expressed alarm Wednesday after Arab League observers in Syriasaid they saw "nothing frightening" during a visit to Homs, the city activists say is the epicenter of nine months of deadly clashes with government forces.
"Some places looked a bit of a mess but there was nothing frightening," Sudanese General Mustafa al-Dabi, the chief of the monitoring contingent, told Reuters by telephone fromDamascus.
"The situation seemed reassuring so far," he added after his team's short visit to the city of one million people, Syria's third largest.
Head of Syria monitors says 'nothing frightening' in Homs
"Yesterday was quiet and there were no clashes. We did not see tanks but we did see some armoured vehicles."
Who could have guessed??
And these astute observations was done during the most brutal onslaught against Homs by the Assad forces.
But not all was as blind as the head of the mission:
Arab League observer quits, slams Syria war crimes
"An Arab League observer in unrest-swept Syria said Wednesday he has quit the mission, accusing the regime of committing a series of war crimes against its people and of duping his colleagues.
"I withdrew from the Arab observers mission because I found myself serving the regime, and not part of an independent observer group," Anwar Malek told the Doha-based news channel Al-Jazeera.
The Syrian regime is playing "dirty," charged the Algerian observer. "It even began killing its supporters to convince the Arab observers that it is carrying out its duties and to gain their sympathy."
"The mission was a farce and the observers have been fooled. The regime orchestrated it and fabricated most of what we saw to stop the Arab League from taking action against the regime," Malek said.
"What I saw was a humanitarian disaster. The regime isn't committing one war crime but a series of crimes against its people," he said. "Children are killed and they are starved and terrorised."
But an official at the Cairo-based Arab League dismissed Malek's accusations, saying they were all unfounded because he was bedridden and was never in the field.
"He was ill and bedridden at his Syria hotel. So how could he make those claims?" said the unnamed official.
The observer who said he spent 15 days in the flashpoint central city of Homs said it must be declared a "disaster" zone. "I saw charred and skinned bodies that had been tortured," said Malek.
Soldiers "attempting to flee or defect were executed," said Malek. "I saw three bodies of executed soldiers. They were shot from the back."
In the interview, Malek said that there had been "an assassination attempt on Monday as we were being taken by car from Homs to Damascus" via the restive Baba Amro district where the mission came under gunfire.
Malek accused the Syrian regime of plotting the attack on the road "controlled by the army and pro-regime 'shabiha' militiamen.
Also on Monday, two Kuwaiti army officers in the observer mission were "slightly hurt" in an attack by "unidentified protesters," the Gulf state's defence ministry has reported.
The observers were attacked while heading to the coastal city of Latakia, said the ministry.
Malek accused the Syrian regime of sending "spies and intelligence officers with our team to act as drivers and minders to get our information, and as soon as we left an area they attacked people."
On the detainees, he said that "none of the real prisoners on the lists of detainees the opposition has provided us with have been released."
Aparently he was on another planet than the Sudanese general Mustafa al-Dabi.
But of course he was just hallucinating in his hotelroom as the official at the Cairo-based Arab League HQ said when he dismissed Malek's accusations, saying they were all unfounded because he was bedridden and was never in the field.
Good job Arab League!
And more:
Observing the Observers
The Arab League's monitoring mission in Syria has been a miserable failure, and no international white knight is waiting in the wings. Syrians are on their own.
"In December, after months of stalling and facing enforced sanctions, the Syrian regime finally seemed to buckle under pressure from the Arab League and agreed to sign a "protocol" ostensibly aimed at quelling the uprising. The agreement called for the regime to remove heavy artillery from urban areas, halt the use of force against civilians, release all political prisoners, and allow independent media into the country. Late last month, an advance team of 15 Arab League observers arrived in Syria on a one-month mission to monitor the regime's compliance with the protocol. They have since increased to 153 observers; that number still falls far below the 500 observers that was part of the original agreement.
"Observe" is a banal word sucked of accountability, responsibility, action — a fitting way to describe an Arab League mission. Monitoring abuses of power is a function one would not expect from the Arab League, which, let's face it, represents mostly dictatorships and absolute monarchies that have less-than-stellar human rights records. But observing Syria is an activity we have all become complicit in — observing the meetings, agreements, conferences, opposition groups forming and reforming, while Syrians are killed every day.
These discussions, devoid of action, build a cruel barrier between ruthless international power games and innocent people who are being played. This is why the Syrian people suspiciously view the Arab League as a protector of the regime and by extension its brutality.
The observers' arrival changed the rules of the game. The regime sends spies to take pictures of the protesters who dare speak to the observers. Before every excursion, the streets are secured in any way necessary, by bullets or arrests (for the safety of the observers or to preserve what's left of the regime's tarnished image?). The streets of Deraa have to be scrubbed clean of its people, silencing their voices and erasing any sign of dissent, to present an image of control, safely guarded by snipers lurking on rooftops.
(You can se a video here on what was going on
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rX8lBxEy7z4&feature=share )
"When the observers first arrived, the people were extremely optimistic," he tells me. "On the first day the team met with the mayor, so we couldn't do anything. The second day, we invited them to a protest at a martyr's funeral. They said, 'We don't have cars for transportation.' We asked, 'How could the team of observers not have cars?' So we postponed the protest. The third day, we asked them to come and observe the protest, but the regime took them somewhere else. Their work is not even at 1 percent. Nothing is happening. They aren't gathering testimonies from the families. They are witnessing the snipers and the army on the streets. They see this with their own eyes. A stranger walking in the streets would know."
So far, the regime has freed 3,500 prisoners, but an estimated 30,000 more still remain imprisoned, and according to Syrian activists, 5,700 people have been detained since the Arab League mission began. One week before the observers arrived, the regime escalated the crackdown, killing at least 250 people in four days. Since then, the casualties have gone down to an average of a couple of dozen people a day, according to numbers tallied by various human rights groups and local coordination committees.
The Arab League mission has been declared a failure for multiple reasons: the insufficient number of observers to cover all the "hot spots"; the questionable integrity of the head of the mission, Sudanese Lt. Gen. Mohammed Ahmed Mustafa al-Dabi; and the observers' heavily monitored movement by security forces, which limits their ability to "observe." As Qatar's prime minister and head of the Arab League committee on Syria, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, admitted last week, "There are mistakes, but we went there not to stop the killing, but to monitor." He cited the Arab League's inexperience with leading this type of mission as one of the main concerns."
"One of the most important shifts in the revolution during the Arab League mission has been its coverage, not by the media but by citizen journalists. Protesters who have been filming demonstrations and atrocities for months have turned their lens to film the observers filming the regime's atrocities. Their powerful YouTube clips feature the monitors in their bright orange vests surrounded by the sounds of gunfire, confronted with dead bodies of children, and bombarded by protesters' complaints and grievances. Observing the observers has emerged as the people's powerful media weapon against the regime and its propaganda.
(The video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9FG8gGUAqI)
Khaled Abu Salah, a prominent activist in Homseven confronted Dabi. "Our problem is not with you as individuals," he told him. "Our problem is with the protocol itself. The first article of the protocol is 'stop the killing.' When 15 people die in one day while you're here, then what have we benefited from your presence?" (The Russian Foreign Ministry later said Dabi's remarks about the situation inSyria were "reassuring." He has since claimed the statement as "unfounded and not true.")
"On Sunday, Arab League ministers met in Cairoto discuss the mission's progress. Opposition groups and activists hoped the league would admit the mission's failure to stop the continuing violence and refer Syria's case to the U.N. Security Council. Instead, Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby confirmed the mission would carry on as planned. Another Arab League meeting has been scheduled for Jan. 19 to re-evaluate the observers' progress. On the rejection of any kind of assistance from the United Nations, Elaraby said, "We do not live in an ideal world, and there is no country in the world that is willing to use force."
"Turning a strategically blind eye has become the norm to Syrians. Once again, the headlines tell the same story: "Arab League Asks Syria to Halt Violence" on a day when activists claim 26 people were killed, and the Syrian regime insists, observed or not, it's going to be bloody business as usual. "
"Instead of seeing reality, observers watch movies by the regime"
Arab League observers in Syria labelled a farce
"Human rights activists now fear the Arab League mission is turning into a farce, as shootings and killings take place almost under the observers' noses in places like Homs, Hama and other trouble spots.
There are also questions about the head of the mission – a Sudanese general who is himself accused of human rights abuses."
"Local witnesses claim tanks had been removed from the streets just ahead of the mission's arrival only to be hidden nearby, where they could supposedly be redeployed as soon as the monitors were gone.
Soazig Dollet from the organisation Reporters Without Borders says the Syrian regime is simply exploiting the observers' visit for its own ends.
(Soazig Dollet speaking)
"This visit is totally biased," she says. "It's a farce. The Syrian regime is making a mockery of respecting the Arab League agreement by accepting the presence of observers."
She also claims that Syrian authorities are engaged in an elaborate game to show the observers what they want to see.
(Soazig Dollet speaking)
"Some prisons in Homs were emptied and detainees transferred to other places," she says. "Fake armed soldiers were shown to observers in order to demonstrate that the Syrian resistance is an armed one. It is armed, but that is not the only kind of resistance. It's obvious that it has all been staged for the observers of the Arab League."
And the final humiliation.
To recapitulate:
After having Assad making a mockery of the Arab League peace plan. And their observers mission in Syriaa total failure. The Arab League took the same peace plan to the UN Security Council only to be vetoed by the as always helpful Russians and Chinese. And to REALLY rub it in the Russians and Chinese even voted against a non-binding resolution by the UN General Assembly.
So what did the humiliated Arab League do after that? Eehhh… they went to one of the powers behind their humiliation, Russia, and literally "begged" the Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov for ANY kind of a deal.
So in the end the Arab League got a new, even more watered-down deal dictated to them by Russia, which then became the UN/Annan peace plan. And as a result got even more humiliated.
Because when they tried (Qatar) to make some amends to the total sellout, as they well know, they were literally repriminded by Lavrov like naughty/misbehaving school children.
"Lavrov lords it over the Arab League foreign ministers
Assad's victory has therefore vindicated Putin and awarded Russia a political and military achievement on a scale that has eluded Moscow for many years. Putin proved he could win over an Arab country to Russian influence, shut doors to the Obama administration's interference and wind up calling the shots in Damascus. The Russian Foreign Minister arrived in Caro Saturday, March 10, ready collect kudos..
It was strange to see Lavrov sitting in a place of honor at the 22-member Arab League foreign ministers' meeting Saturday, March, 10. Stranger still, they let him talk the Arab ministers down and dictate Russia's five-point plan for the Arab world to follow for resolving the Syrian crisis.
It called for a complete cease-fire, monitoring procedures, no foreign interference, humanitarian aid supplies and "firm support" for international envoy Kofi Annan's mission to promote dialogue between the government and opposition.
Russia will be there for Iran at nuclear talks too
Aware of the true situation in Syria the Arab foreign ministers bowed to the Russian plan although it was clearly tilted in Assad's favor.
And when the Qatari prime minister and foreign minister Sheikh Hamad Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani tried later to undo some of the damage by demanding military intervention to stop the bloodletting in Syria after he had despaired of a Libyan-style Western-Arab operation, he was publicly rebuked from New York by Lavrov.
Arriving there to meet US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the Russian foreign minister said: "I was amazed …that while I was in the air my colleague, with whom we agreed on these principles, the prime minister and foreign minister of Qatar, called publicly for dispatching Arab or international forces to Syria. It absolutely contradicts what we agreed on and announced publicly."
Lavrov's tone strikingly demonstrated Moscow's utter confidence in its ability to dictate the course of events in the Arab world in contrast to Washington's withdrawal from the scene.
Not exactly one of the proudest moments in the Arab Leagues history. And as usual the ones paying the price the people of Syria.
Läs även andra bloggares åsikter om http://bloggar.se/om/yttrandefrihet" rel="tag">yttrandefrihet</a>, <a href="http://bloggar.se/om/fri-+och+r%E4ttigheter" rel="tag">fri- och rättigheter, Läs även andra bloggares åsikter om <a href=" http://bloggar.se/om/USA" rel="tag">USA</a>


text:
Washington Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss' contract will void this week, making him an unrestricted free agent, according to a league source.
While the sides are highly unlikely to complete a new deal before the current contract voids, the Redskins could very well re-sign Moss, who had a career-high 93 catches this past season, when a new collective bargaining agreement is in place.
Moss, 31, was a Pro Bowl selection after the 2005 season, when he had a career-best 1,483 yards. He has 593 receptions for 8,558 yards and 52 touchdowns during his 10-year career.


text:
Co-stars and now competitors, Michael Douglas and Matt Damon will present at the Emmys for the first time, it was announced Tuesday.
2013 Emmy nominations: Surprises and snubs
Both stars are nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Miniseries or Movie for Behind the Candelabra, which received a total of 15 nominations. Douglas, 68, played Liberace in the HBO film, and Damon, 42, portrayed Liberace's former companion Scott Thorson. Each actor has been nominated four times before.
They are the first presenters announced for the 65th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. Hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, the ceremony will air on Sunday, Sept. 22 at 8/7c on CBS.
Do you want Douglas or Damon to go home with the award?


text:
Time: December 2, 2017 to February 28, 2018
Location: Mountain View, CA
Street: 447 Bell Street
City/Town: New York
Website or Map: http://nfllivego.com/giants-v…
Event Type: tv, series
Organized By: steven carr
Latest Activity: Dec 2, 2017
Export to Outlook or iCal (.ics)
© 2020 Created by Wu-Tang Management and Wu-Tang Clan. Copyright 2018 An Official Wu-Tang site. Powered by


text:
At the end of February I reported that Google was including both rich snippet reviews AND authorship images and links in blended results on the desktop. At the time these features had not appeared in the mobile results. Starting yesterday Google has once again updated the Blended display on the desktop to not show the rich snippet reviews in the blended results (they still show in organic results) nor the author links as much. Google also is now including a larger authors image and including additional links to their reviews.
Compare this screen shot from this morning to the one taken on February 29th:
More interesting to me is that Google has added Author photos to the blended and organic mobile results. This creates a very strong visual queue on the much more constrained mobile desktop:
Google Updates Blended Display on Desktop AND Mobile by Mike Blumenthal


text:
Moderator: Spider
Ensane wrote:Sup guys Enthane here, I just want to give ramdas (lucmarceau) a big thanks for setting up all this blood legion stuff. I'm an ele shaman wanting to raid for blso. I will be switching most likely in mop to resto since the dps for shamans atm aren't very great. I cant wait to start raiding with you guys and get to know all of you. Thanks again Enthane
Lucmarceau wrote:Now that I have a moment to finally post I can bring up a project I had mentioned earlier in guild chat.
What I'm starting as of tonight is the creation of Blood Legion Spec Ops main core (Outside of QRF of course), and in order to do this I need the attention of the best players possible that would meet the requirements to be on this elite roster. For those unable to meet such strict requirements, Kaexo will be putting together multiple raids based on times members will be able to play, so contacting him about raiding on a more casual basis is highly recommended.
What I am also asking from you Blood Legion Spec Ops is to show your interest here, and begin ultilizing resources that have been given to us in order to stay connected, and build as a guild. This forum thread, the mumble channel, and my spreadsheets are just to name a few. As more of us begin to use these, we will be given a helping hand from those with more power to grant us even more resources (Maybe even a sub-forum).
In the coming weeks, I would like as many members to post in this thread to show others that may come across this that Spec Ops is not a guild where nothing is going on and to give feedback on what you would like to see done. Activities, events, maybe you need help farming a legendary, post it here and I will be sure to make stuff happen.
Your ever so helpful, and very tired Slave Master,
kaeXo.MaxFrag.net port: 3928
Mankrik wrote:Hey guys. I just joined Blood Legion Spec Ops a few minutes ago. I'd love to support Blood Legion in MoP and all other content in the future. I notice that BLSO is forming its own raid group, and I am interested in that if it meets the right times for me. My iLvl is 397 and I am 1/8 H. Here is an armory link: http://us.battle.net/wow/en/character/i ... k/advanced
Lucmarceau wrote:Just an update/heads up : All members applying for this core team I am putting together will be required to pass audits from both myself, and members from both, guilds such as Blood Legion, and other prominent sources.
Ideas for passing this audit :
- FULL epic gems (Casuals go elsewhere)
- As much BiS gear as possible (Heroic is not mandatory)
- Optimal reforge to max potential dps/effective hps
- Both a universal/mechanic specific spec (If you are apply as one spec, and not a dual spec)
- Raiding achievement points showing you have "been there done that" (Dates are not a concern of mine really, although the earlier the better)
As always, questions or concerns can be posted here or directed towards me on either Ramdas, Notramdas, or Lucmarceau.
Thank you for your considerations!
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 1 guest


text:
DescriptionStop the rising molecules from reaching the top in this challenging puzzle game. Click away molecules of the same colour to stay alive and collect the golden coins to advance to the next level. Addictive fun for the keen eye.
- The goal of Chain Reaction is to clear groups of coloured molecules to stop them from rising to the top of the game field.
- Clear away molecules by clicking on them with your mouse. If you can remove them they will be highlighted when you move over them.
- Grab Midas coins to advance to the next level, the game area will be reset and your score will increase.


text:
Gastrostomy Tubes
Gastrostomy tubes are feeding tubes placed through the abdomen into the stomach. Gastrostomy tubes are used to give children formula, liquids, and medicines. These tubes are placed by aPediatric Surgeon or by a Pediatric Gastroenterologist. A gastrostomy tube is placed one of two ways: 1) percutaneously and 2) surgically.
At hospital discharge, a referral will be made to have a nurse visit your home. The nurse will help you care for the gastrostomy tube and give feedings and medications and, in general, serve as a resource in your home.
Surgically Inserted Gastrostomy Tubes
The pediatric surgeon places a gastrostomy tube in the operating room under general anesthesia. This operation is done through a small incision (cut) on the abdomen. The surgeon may place a temporary tube, called a Malecot®, into the gastrostomy opening. The Malecot® will be stitched to the skin and left in place for several weeks. The Malecot® allows the gastrostomy tract to heal well before a ballon type gastrostomy tube is inserted. A Malecot® tube is about twelve inches long, and most of the tube extends out of the abdomen.
After the gastrostomy tube is placed your child will remain in the hospital for observation and care. An IV (intravenous line) will be placed in the operating room before the procedure and this will be used to give fluids, antibiotics and pain medications while your child is recovering. Feedings are usually started the day after the gastronomy is placed.
Changing the Malecot® To a Balloon Gastrostomy Tube
After a few weeks, the Malecot® will be removed by the surgeon or the surgical nurse and a skin level balloon gastrostomy tube will be placed. These tubes are made of silicone. They are held in the stomach by a water-filled balloon. When the nurse inserts the device, she will teach you how to take care for the tube. For more information watch the following guides:
Video Guide to AMT Mini Ballon Gastronomy Tube
- Introduction to the AMT Mini Balloon Button
- Care and Replacement Guide for the AMT Mini Balloon Button
- Bolus Feeding Guide for the AMT Mini Balloon Button
- Continuous Feeding Guide for the AMT Mini Balloon Button
Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy (PEG) Tube
A PEG Tube, or Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy tube, is placed by a Pediatric Gastroenterologist in the operating room. The PEG tube is inserted using a telescopic instrument, called an endoscope. The endoscope is a small tube with a light and camera on the end that lets the Gastroenterologist see into the esophagus (food tube) and stomach. The endoscope allows the doctor to choose the best location in the stomach to place the PEG tube. Once the location is chosen, a small opening is made on the outside of abdomen into the stomach. After the opening is made, the top part of the PEG tube is pulled up out of the stomach through this opening. The top of the tube rests on the skin and the bottom part of the PEG, which is shaped like bulb, remains inside the stomach. This bulb shape anchors the tube in the stomach and prevents it from coming out.
After the PEG tube is placed your child will be admitted to the hospital for observation and care. The hospital stay is usually three days. Prior to the procedure, an IV (intravenous line) will be placed in the operating room. This will be used to give fluids, antibiotics and pain medication, for one to two days, as your child is recovering. Feedings will be started through the PEG tube within one or two days.
The PEG tube which is made of silicone, must stay in the stomach for about three months to allow the tract (hole) to heal between the abdomen and the stomach. The tract must be well healed so it is safe for the gastrostomy tube to be changed.
If your child requires continuous feeding with the gastrostomy tube, a pump and supplies will be ordered by the GI or surgical nurse from a home care supply company. The equipment and supplies will be delivered to your home or to the hospital before your child is discharged. You will be taught to use the pump by a representative from the home care company or home nursing agency, as pumps differ from hospital to home. Feeding bags, replacement gastrostomy tubes, extension sets, syringes, gauze, tape and formula will be ordered for your child by the GI or surgical nurse.
General Feedings Guidelines
Give feedings and medications as directed by your nurse or doctor. Flush the gastrostomy tube with 10-15cc's of warm water after every feeding or medication. This prevents clogging and keeps the tube as clean as possible. If you are giving continuous drip feeding into a PEG tube you may want to tape connections to prevent disconnection of the extension set from the tube and spillage of feedings. If you are using a balloon gastrostomy, such as an AMT mini-one tube, check the volume of water in the balloon every week and refill as necessary to maintain the amount of water prescribed by your child's doctor or nurse (Do not perform this until at least 2 months after the tube was initially placed).
What if the tube comes out before the gastrostomy tract has healed?
It rarely happens with a PEG tube and sometimes happens with the Malecot® or balloon gastrostomy tubes. If the tube becomes accidentally dislodged call your child's doctor at either the GI (415-476-5892) or surgical office (415-476-2538) for instructions.
If you do not speak to a doctor or nurse after thirty (30) minutes take your child and gastrostomy supplies to the nearest emergency room for tube reinsertion. A tube will be placed into the gastrostomy tract to prevent closure and the need for another operation. If the emergency room doctors and nurses have questions, they can call the pediatric gastroenterologist, or surgeon who placed the tube.
If you do not have a replacement gastrostomy tube to take with you, a FOLEY® catheter of the same size or smaller can be inserted as a replacement tube. Often, a special x-ray called a "gastrostomy tube dye study" will need to be taken to make sure the newly placed tube is in the stomach. A FOLEY® catheter can be used for feeding and stomach decompression at home. Call your GI or surgical doctor or nurse if your child required a visit to the emergency room for care of his or her gastrostomy tube.
What should I do about the following problems?
Redness around the site
The skin may be slightly pink after initial insertion. You should see a decrease in this pink color over time. If the skin becomes tender, warm or red, call your child's doctor or nurse.
Drainage that dries on the skin is called crusting. Crusting and drainage is common around gastrostomy tubes. You can remove crusting and drainage with warm water.
If tube gets bumped, or is rubbed, there may be a small amount of bleeding from around the tube. Apply pressure should stop the bleeding for up to ten minutes. If the bleeding does not stop, call your child's doctor or nurse. Blood coming through the tube is not normal. If this happens call your child's doctor or go to the nearest emergency room.
Granulation Tissue
Granulation tissue appears in most children at some time after the gastrostomy tube is placed. This tissue is common and not dangerous. It grows directly around the gastrostomy hole and looks raised, red and may ooze fluid or bleed easily. Granulation tissue should be treated when it first appears. This can be done in the office by your child's nurse or doctor. A special ointment or cream will be prescribed to apply to the granulation tissue (not the surrounding skin) up to four times a day until the granulation tissue goes away.
If your child has a fever, call your child's pediatrician.
Vomiting and/or diarrhea
If your child has vomiting and/or diarrhea, call your child's pediatrician and the pediatric GI or surgical nurse or doctor for advice.
Homecare for Surgically Inserted Tubes
Skin Care With a Surgically Inserted Tube
Cleanse the area around the GT with water daily.After cleaning the skin around the gastrostomy tube dry well. If there is a Malecot® in place, make sure it is taped securely in place, to prevent movement.
AMT Mini One Gastrostomy Feeding Extension Sets
When your child has an AMT mini-oneskin level button in place you will be using feeding extension sets. A feeding extension set is a special tube that connects to the gastrostomy tube and allows formula, liquids and medicines to be given into the stomach. There are two types of sets available for use with an AMT mini-one skin level tube. These are a 1) bolus set and a 2) right angle set. The bolus set is used for feedings given by gravity through a syringe. The right angle set is used for slow or continuous feedings, given by a pump. Either tube can serve as a decompression tube to drain air or liquid from the stomach. The decompression tube is used if a child has too much gas (which can't be burped up) or if the child is very uncomfortable and appears to have a bloated or full abdomen. Any AMT mini-one extension set fits any size AMT or MIC-KEY® gastrostomy tube.
Routine Changing Of Balloon Gastrostomy Tubes
The gastrostomy tube will need to be replaced when there is a malfunction, a poor fit or when it has been in for several months. Most parents are taught, in the hospital or office, how to change the gastrostomy tube and are comfortable changing the tube on their own. However, you can bring your child to the office or, in many cases, a home care nurse can be sent to your home to help you change the tube. A spare gastrostomy tube of the same size should be with your child at all times in case the balloon ruptures and replacement is required.
It is important to know the size of your child's gastrostomy tube. It is printed in black letters on top of the gastrostomy tube. We recommend that you write down the size of your child's tube on this document or some place where you can find it when needed. This will help you when reordering supplies and talking with your child's doctors and nurses.
Homecare for Percutaneous Endoscopic Gastrostomy (PEG) Tube
Skin Care With the PEG Tube
Cleanse the area around the GT with water for the first two days after placement. After this, daily bathing with soap and water is all that is necessary. To clean the skin around the PEG tube, lift up the flap, inspect the area; wash the skin with soap and water and dry the skin completely. Most PEG tubes do not need a dressing. A small amount of drainage is normal. Turn the tube with each feeding to prevent skin irritation.
If the tube becomes too loose, spacers, may be placed between the PEG and the skin to provide a better fit. If the tube gets too tight and there are spacers in place, these can be removed anytime, by your GI nurse or doctor.
After three months you may choose to replace the PEG with the same type of tube or you may change to a balloon type gastrostomy tube. Talk with your nurse or doctor about the best tube for your child. If the tube is working well and does not need to be changed at 3 months, it may stay in for up to one year.
PEG Tube Extension Sets
You will receive three types of extension sets. An extension set is a special tube that connects to the gastrostomy tube and allows formula, liquids and medicines to be given into the stomach. There is 1) a bolus set, 2) a right angle set and 3) a decompression tube. The bolus set is used for feedings given by gravity through a syringe. The right angle set is used for slow or continuous feedings given by a pump. The decompression tube (which has a long tip which opens a valve at the base of the tube) allows air and formula to be drained from the stomach, if needed. The decompression tube is used if a child has too much gas (which can't be burped up) or if the child is very uncomfortable and appears to have a bloated or full abdomen. The nurses taking care of your child will show you how to attach and remove each extension tube.
PEG extension tubes must be the same size as the gastrostomy tube in order to fit. PEG tubes have two measurements, the diameter (width) measured in French (FR) size and the length measured in centimeters (CM). These numbers are printed on the inside flap of the PEG. The bolus set and the right angle set must be the same diameter (for example 14 Fr) as the PEG tube. The decompression tube must be the same diameter and the same length (for example 14 Fr and 1.7 cm) in order to fit. We recommend that you write down the size of your child's tube on this document or some place where you can find it when needed. This will help you when reordering supplies and talking with your child's doctors and nurses. The office will also have a record of your child's tube size.
Ordering Additional Supplies
You will need to call the home care company monthly to reorder more supplies, so keep your home care company name and phone number readily available. We recommend you place your order when you have about one week of supplies left. Do not wait until you are out of supplies. Supplies are rarely shipped without a phone call and it is possible to run out of supplies. When your shipment arrives at your home, check the order. If you are missing anything, or the supplies are not correct, call your home care company directly. If you cannot resolve the problem contact your GI or surgical nurse for help. Sometimes a new prescription from your child's doctor is required.


text:
Shipping & Returns
Last updated June 30th 2020:
We offer a flat-rate shipping method for the EU based on the cost of each order - the rates for which are listed below. Please scroll down the page for further general information about deliveries within the EU and other countries.
Revised Shipping fees apply from July 1st 2020 until December 31st 2020 due to changes in MwSt. rates in Germany. For orders up to € 50,00 to be delivered to addresses in Germany:
Orders with a total value of over € 50,00 that are to be delivered in Germany will be sent free of charge except for Goals and other very heavy items where we have to pay a supplementary handling fee to our shippers.
Such extra costs will be advised at or shortly after the time of order.
Orders up to a value of € 150,00 for all other countries in the EU will be delivered for a shipping fee of:
Orders above € 150,00 for EU countries except Germany will be sent without shipping fees, except in the case of Goals /heavier items as mentioned above
This EU zone covers the following countries:
Czech Republic
Republic of Ireland
The Netherlands
United Kingdom
NOTE: Certain smaller items or smaller packages may be available to be shipped at a cost lower than that listed above as they can be sent through the postal system.
Please contact us for confirmation of this if you would prefer us to use the post instead of our standard carrier.
If in such a case you pay for your order by credit card or PayPal, any excess shipping charge will be refunded to that same card after the goods have been shipped, otherwise we will confirm the correct shipping fee and total amount to be paid before you make your bank transfer payment.
NOTE: As mentioned above - if you order certain larger items, your delivery may be subject to a fixed handling fee instead of the delivery charges listed previously. Where this is the case, the fixed handling fee will be clearly stated on the product information page.
This condition applies mainly to Goals/LaxWall Rebounders for which we are charged an additional 35 Euro per item handling charge by our freight forwarders.
This charge will be applied even if your order has exceeded our "delivery free of shipping charges" ceiling of either 50 Euros for Germany or 150 Euros to other EU countries.
Please contact us to confirm shipping charges and tax arrangements for deliveries to any country outside the EU.
This covers shipments to countries such as Switzerland, Norway, Serbia plus other defined economic areas such as Gibraltar, the Channel Islands and the Canary Islands amongst others.
Shipments including items exceeding 150cm packed length - for example: defence shafts or defence sticks, can currently not be sent to destinations outside the EU without incurring much higher shipping charges - we will contact you in such cases to discuss shipping options and cost implications before proceeding with your order.
Except in specially agreed cases we will generally not ship goods to the USA as the sales agreements we have made with our suppliers/manufacturers are for Europe only.
* Orders to be delivered to Germany with a total goods order value greater than EUR 50,00 normally incur no shipping charge**.
* Orders to be delivered to all other EU countries with a total goods order value greater than EUR 150,00 normally incur no shipping charge**.
**We reserve the right to charge a fee for shipping of extremely heavy or bulky items such as Goals or the larger Rebounders. This fee is currently 35 Euros per Goal/Lax Wall Rebounder and represents what is charged directly to us by our freight forwarder for the handling of oversized items.
All prices for merchandise and shipping rates shown on our website include the appropriate German rate of Mw.St. (sales tax) @ 5% for magazines or 16% for all other items.
To work out how long it will take to get your stuff, add the availability of the item onto the delivery time.
* Normal delivery time 2-3 working days after the day of order.
* Delivery time for not in stock items up to 4 weeks, as in most cases such items have to be sourced in and shipped from the USA.
Remember to check availabilities carefully if you order more than one item, as you will normally not receive any part of your order until all the items are available. In the case of pre-order or long availability items, it is recommended that you request separate deliveries as items become available (this may involve extra shipping costs at our discretion).
We kindly ask you to advise all guarantee requests and returns of merchandise by e-mail to before you ship them to us. You may be provided with a returns number, which will facilitate quick processing of your request.
Warranty returns are normally accepted subject to reasonable usage criteria and inside the time limits set by the equipment manufacturers which are generally 6 months from time of purchase. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Returns of unwanted purchases made subject to the terms of EU Directive 1999/44/EC which includes an online purchasing "cooling off" period of 14 days after the receipt of the goods will normally be accepted.
The intention to return such goods should communicated to us in writing or by e-mail and the goods should be returned to us preferably unopened or at least unused with their original packaging intact wherever possible. Shipping costs for the return of unwanted purchase should normally be borne by the purchaser up to an order value of 40,00 Euros, thereafter, despite the fact that the EU regulations governing returns have been changed, the costs are borne by us. The total amount paid for the purchase (including any shipping costs if appropriate) will be refunded to the purchaser within 30 days of the goods being safely received at our offices.


text:
OIF Summary, Dec. 22, 2009: Forces in Iraq Arrest Terrorism Suspects
Dispatches from the Front:
WASHINGTON, Dec. 22, 2009 -- Iraq security forces, working with U.S. advisors, arrested 15 terrorism suspects, some of them cell leaders, in Iraq in recent days, military officials reported.
Iraqi forces arrested eight suspected terrorists today in three combined operations conducted to arrest terrorism suspects wanted on warrants in northern Iraq.
In western Mosul, Iraqi forces and U.S. advisors searched a home for a suspected al-Qaida in Iraq member who coordinates funding, weapons and equipment for a bombing cell in the region. After examining evidence at the scene, Iraqi forces arrested three suspected criminal associates of the warranted al-Qaida in Iraq member without incident.
In Beiji, southwest of Kirkuk, Iraqi police and U.S. advisors conducted traffic stops of two vehicles to arrest a wanted al-Qaida in Iraq member suspected of staging deadly bombing and rocket attacks in Mosul and participating in kidnappings of Iraqi civilians.
Security forces stopped two minibuses in southern Beiji based on credible reports that the wanted man was a passenger on one of the buses. Following preliminary questioning and examination of evidence at the scene, Iraqi police arrested four suspected criminal associates of the wanted man without incident.
Also in Beiji today, an Iraqi emergency services unit arrested a man during an operation targeting a suspected member of an al-Qaida in Iraq cell. Iraqi police and U.S. advisors searched several buildings with a warrant for the alleged al-Qaida in Iraq member, who is believed to be responsible for multiple kidnappings and bombing attacks in the region. Following a preliminary examination of evidence at the scene, Iraqi police arrested a suspected criminal associate of the warranted al-Qaida in Iraq member.
In northeastern Baghdad today, Iraqi forces arrested four suspected terrorists during a combined operation to arrest a suspected member of the Kataib Hezbollah terrorist network. Iraqi forces and U.S. advisors searched several homes for the wanted suspect, who acquires and distributes weapons and bombs to terrorist members who conduct attacks in the Iraqi capital.
In other recent operations in Iraq:
- Iraqi forces and U.S. soldiers arrested a man Dec. 19 on charges of being involved with terrorist groups in the Baghdad area. Based on a warrant issued by an Iraqi judge in Bayaa, U.S. troops of the 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team and Bayaa police apprehended Sayf Ali Abbas, believed to be responsible for kidnapping and planting roadside bombs.
- Elements of a northern Iraq emergency response battalion, working with U.S. forces, arrested Aqil Jabar al-Tamimi on terrorism charges Dec. 17 near Tikrit by the authority of a warrant issued by the Central Investigative Court of Karkh. Aqil, a suspected Jaysh al-Madhi insurgent force cell leader, allegedly is responsible for the kidnapping of Iraqi civilians. He also is a suspected bombing cell leader believed to be responsible for multiple attacks on Iraqi security forces and other terrorist activities throughout Diyala province through financing and recruiting new members.
- Iraqi and U.S. forces arrested Ali Hussein Hassan Farhat on a warrant for terrorism in northern Iraq, Dec. 15. Farhat, a member of the Islamic State of Iraq terrorist group, was wanted by authorities for his alleged role in multiple assassinations and vehicle-borne bomb attacks in Mosul and throughout Ninevah province.
Labels: Dispatches from the Front, GWOT, Iraq, Military, OIF, Terrorism


text:
UPDATE!on October 10th, 2013
Posted In: Blog
I'M STILL ALIVE!! In fact, the website for the paying gig I'm working on is finally up and running and I thought I'd share it with an extra little Manny and Ruby comic. Anyway, the name of the graphic novel is Caretakers and it's a fun ghost story that I like to think of as a cross between Scooby Doo and The Goonies (with a bit of Abbot and Costello thrown in for good measure.) The first book is available now and we're planning on releasing it in four volumes: the second one should hopefully be done by this coming spring. Enjoy, and though it's still on hiatus, I haven't forgotten about Jamie the Trickster. 🙂


text:
Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Despite promises to remain impartial and tell the truth about what really happened, Inside Edition unsurprisingly characterized Alex Jones' DNC confrontation of Michelle Malkin as a "hateful attack," while the Dallas Morning News engaged in outright libel by claiming Jones had chanted "kill Michelle Malkin," a brazen lie that is still doing the rounds on neo-con blogs.
|Geraldo Rivera: "Michelle Malkin is the most vile, hateful commentator I've ever met in my life. She actually believes that neighbors should start snitching out neighbors, and we should be deporting people. It's good she's in D.C. and I'm in NY. I'd spit on her if I saw her."
Alex Jones and his crew filmed their meeting with the Inside Edition team and it was broadcast live on the Internet yesterday. The Inside Edition reporters were uninterested in footage which clearly shows provocateurs completely unaffiliated with Alex Jones chanting inflammatory statements, as well as Malkin's own photographer making a false report to Denver police claiming Jones had made death threats toward Malkin and punched her bodyguard, when her bodyguard is on tape assaulting Jones and his crew.
Inside Edition characterized the incident as a "hateful attack" on Malkin, the poor little victim, while failing to explain any of the reasons behind why Jones confronted her in the first place – namely the fact that she is an advocate of torture, runs defense for puppy killers, and argues in her own book that dissidents and other undesirables, including Arab-Americans, should be rounded up and jailed in internment camps.
The Inside Edition blerb describes Malkin as a "conservative author and political commentator," while it labels Jones as a "controversial radio personality" who "ranted and raved" and engaged in "virulent verbal bashing" while "on the attack".
Sounds about as fair and balanced as Fox News.
Did Alex Jones shout at Michelle Malkin? During some parts of the incident yes, during others he attempted to talk to her rationally. The point is, Inside Edition, as well as every other establishment press outlet that has reported on the incident, has uniformly failed to highlight why Michelle Malkin deserved every earful she got.
An Associated Content article describes Malkin as, "A short, attractive, pleasant lady of Philippine descent."
Pleasant? This is the same woman who went too far even for Bill O'Reilly's liking when she infamously proclaimed "boo-hoo!" in response to news that Guantanamo Bay detainees (many of whom are innocent children) had killed themselves.
Just look at what even arch-neo-con Geraldo Rivera had to say about her.
"Michelle Malkin is the most vile, hateful commentator I've ever met in my life. She actually believes that neighbors should start snitching out neighbors, and we should be deporting people. It's good she's in D.C. and I'm in NY. I'd spit on her if I saw her."
Malkin's journalistic prowess has been off-target so many times that her website, Hot Air, is a laughing stock on the Internet.
In November 2006, Malkin embarked on a campaign to question the existence of an Iraqi policeman, Jamil Hussein, who has been used as a source by the Associated Press. Hussein turned out to be very real and Malkin was forced to retract her bizarre inference that he was imaginary.
Likewise, when footage emerged of Marines throwing a puppy off a cliff in Iraq, Malkin suggested that the puppy was in fact already dead or even a CGI-manipulated fake. The fact that the Marines who admitted killing the puppy were later disciplined and expelled by the Marine Corps was quietly ignored and no retraction appeared on her website.
In May 2008, Malkin claimed that a Dunkin' Donuts commercial was terrorist propaganda because it featured a woman wearing a neck scarf.
The Associated Content piece again attempts to smear Jones by claiming a mob affiliated with him chanted "kill Michelle Malkin," when the individuals involved were actually provocateurs which were then cited by Malkin's stooge in a false report he made to Denver police claiming Alex Jones was threatening Malkin.
The Dallas Morning News went one further. In a blog that appears on the DMN website, radio host Mark Davis claims it was Jones himself who chanted "Kill Michelle Malkin!" – a completely false and libelous charge. Respondents to the blog are advising the Dallas Morning News to call their lawyers and prepare for a pretty expensive lawsuit. A full retraction and apology has not been issued at time of press.
Neo-Con news outlets continue to embarrass themselves by falsely claiming that Jones or people affiliated with him advocated the murder of Michelle Malkin. In doing so they are only shaming themselves and letting everyone know exactly what they are – lying hacks whose only agenda is to smear those that dare question their jack-booted propagandist Fox News idols like Michelle Malkin.
The Emergency Election Sale is now live! Get 30% to 60% off our most popular products today!


text:
It looks like we're not the only ones celebrating the 10th Anniversary of Fallen! If you watched American Idol last night, you know that one of the contestants sung a rendition of "Bring Me To Life". Don't forget – we have a limited-edition version of Fallen available now on PURPLE VINYL here.
Angie Miller – Bring Me To Life – American Idol… by IdolxMuzic


text:
Jimmie: that sixth championship just weeks away? (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
By Mike Mulhern
MARTINSVILLE, Va.
Okay, anyone who wrote off Brad Keselowski here, after that miserable qualifying performance the other day, well, put some ketchup and mustard on your boots and start eating.
Keselowski and crew chief Paul Wolfe put on an inspired comeback in Sunday's Martinsville 500, even daring to gamble for the win in the final miles. And though they gave up the Sprint Cup points lead, with only three races left in the playoffs, Keselowski and Wolfe proved unshakeable....on a day when they were all but written off.
The graveyard of championship dreams?
That's what Martinsville Speedway was for Keselowski and Matt Kenseth one year ago. And that's the way it was sized up pre-race here for Keselowski, after a weak qualifying run Friday, which put him 32nd for Sunday's start, while Jimmie Johnson was on the pole.
Well, one team's championship dreams did die here Sunday -- Denny Hamlin's, with a surprising electrical issue. He's 49 points down to new leader Johnson now, and that pretty much makes it a title duel between Johnson and Keselowski heading to Texas Motor Speedway, Phoenix International Raceway, and then Homestead-Miami Speedway for the Nov. 18th finale.
Jimmie Johnson, on the inside, title rival Brad Keselowski on the outside (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
"In order to be the champion, the tracks you know you can win at you have to win at. We did that today," Johnson said after his first win of the chase.
"Dover turned into a fuel mileage race, which isn't the best for us. Certainly played into Brad's hands.
"The final three tracks, two of them if not all three, we can see that (a potential fuel mileage finish). We're working hard to play that game if need be. I think we're better at it than we were at the start of the chase.
"We're getting smarter and better."
Wolfe and Keselowski made an odd gamble at the end. With 18 men still on the lead lap, and Keselowski running sixth, with just 20 laps or so to go, the yellow came out and Keselowski opted not to pit. Only Dale Earnhardt followed his lead. The other 16 drivers got fresh tires. And Johnson needed only a few laps to wrestle the lead away from Keselowski, who faded back to sixth.
So the gamble wound up a draw, though it could have been worse for Keselowski.
"I thought their decision to stay out would cost them a few more spots at the end, but Brad did a nice job of rallying," Johnson said.
Johnson has been solid during the chase to be sure, but Keselowski and Wolfe have thrown several surprises at them, just like here.
Brad Keselowski: avoided a knockout punch at Martinsville, hanging tough in the championship chase (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
Still Johnson is becoming increasingly confident about taking a sixth championship.
"We've done a very nice job over these seven races to put ourselves in the points lead," Johnson said. "We've had a variety of different races finish with fuel mileage and things like that that have kept us out of victory lane and certainly played into their hands.
"We're ready to race under any conditions. Brad is a great driver. That's a great team.
"Next two races will tell the tale.
"Anything can happen. We could both wad it up next week and Clint Bowyer is your champion. You never know.
"We have to be the best to be the champions. I think we're showing we're in form."
It was not an easy afternoon for Jimmie Johnson (48), here dodging Juan Pablo Montoya (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
The charge began, Johnson says, at Indianapolis, in late July, which he called "a good landmark weekend for us.
"We were around it, hitting on things. But starting at Indy, everything started clicking really, really well for us.
"I feel as focused and prepared as I've ever been in my career."
However Johnson insists "I have no expectations. That's something that I carried on my shoulders last year. I guess part of the pressure I've spoken about was gone after losing last year's championship.
"This year has been a lot different. The pressure is there; the pressure is always there. You can't hide from it. But it's different.
"It's more about me doing the best job I can, and this team doing the best job it can...rather than keeping a streak alive.
"I really like the purity of our desire right now. It's coming from a really good place."
Jimmie at the finish line, though just barely ahead of runner-up Kyle Busch (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
While Keselowski and Wolfe keep surprising, and keep hanging in there, it is obvious that Rick Hendrick's Chevrolet operation is operating at peak performance down the stretch.
Hendrick's four teams had a great day, at one time holding four of the top eight positions. Kasey Kahne wound up third, surviving the late race crunch that dropped Jeff Gordon to seventh.
Gordon, Johnson, Denny Hamlin and Clint Bowyer had the four strongest cars all day. And at the end Bowyer and Gordon got into it a bit.
"We were on the outside, and we were sitting ducks," Gordon said. "I was just trying to get down (to the inside lane). I felt like I got down in front of him... but maybe I didn't. I don't know; I haven't seen the video.
"Pretty typical Martinsville with Clint Bowyer...it's not the first time. I like Clint a lot; we race really hard together, and we were just racing hard right there."
Bowyer, third now in the title hunt, 26 points down -- about the difference between a win and a 23rd place run on any given Sunday -- was in the chase for victory Sunday most of the warm but overcast afternoon, in front of a crowd estimated at 60,000.
And Bowyer wasn't very happy with Gordon, who is out of the title hunt.
"I was doortodoor with him, and he turned left to block me...but I was already there," Bowyer said. "I hit the brakes... and I hit him so hard to try to stay off of him.
"I was there, and he just kept turning left on me. I was like 'Hey, you better not do that.'
"We had a car capable of winning. But we lost track position when they beat us out of the pits, and I never could regain it."
Hendrick's Dale Earnhardt Jr., making his first start after sitting out two weeks recovering from two concussions, ran a solid top-10 all day, and was second on the final restart, after skipping the final round of pit stops. And worn tires were apparently an issue. Carl Edwards spun and collected Earnhardt, and Earnhardt finished 21st. Edwards came over to explain the situation afterwards to Earnhardt.
The day, Earnhardt said was just "alright. We didn't have a really good car and fought some issues all day long.
"Just made some poor choices at the end that got us run over."
Earnhardt said he felt good in the car. "I was just really pissed off about how we finished that race. That was really ridiculous. I mean you've got to use a little common sense. That was not a good move."
Martinsville Speedway: the malestrum Sunday (Photo: Getty Images for NASCAR)
© 2010-2011 www.mikemulhern.net All rights reserved.
Web site by www.webdesigncarolinas.com


text:
Buddy System
This story appears in the March 1998 issue of . Subscribe »
Want to target new markets, reach more clients and find greater uses for your products and services? Team up with another small business and form a marketing partnership. Whether you operate a bed and breakfast, sell sporting equipment in a retail store or teach people computer skills, you can benefit from a marketing partnership.
To find the perfect mates, Kevin Donlin looked for businesses that didn't compete directly with Guaranteed Resumes, his Minneapolis resume-writing service, and found a complementary industry: employment agencies.
To sell agency owners on the partnership idea, he showed them he could solve a problem for them. "Employment agencies can't sell an employer on a job applicant with a bad resume. I told them I can write better resumes and help them get jobs for their applicants."
Donlin sent a broadcast fax that offered his services to 40 local firms he found in the Yellow Pages, then followed up by sending resume samples and information about Guaranteed Resumes to those who expressed interest.
So far, Donlin has launched four marketing partnerships. "That's business from clients who wouldn't have known about me otherwise," he says.
Providing a top-quality product or service, Donlin believes, is the key to maintaining long-lasting marketing partnerships--and to starting new ones. "If you do a good job, your marketing partners will tell their friends," he says.
Forming a marketing partnership with two West Coast public relations firms helped Web-site consultant Katie Nosbisch, owner of Complete Consulting in Decorah, Iowa, land contracts with prestigious high-tech clients, including Hitachi.
Here's how it works: The public relations firms get leads on a new contract. They make the initial contact with the client and show off Nosbisch's marketing materials as part of their presentation. Once the contract is signed, the public relations experts hire Nosbisch to design the client's Web site.
"My associates are PR experts who know how to work with the press. I'm an expert at constructing databases and developing Web sites. It's a good mix," says Nosbisch. The alliance works well even though Nosbisch is several states removed from her partners. "When we're working on a contract, we're constantly in communication, either by e-mail or by phone," she says.
Maintaining quality communication, she adds, is the cornerstone of any successful marketing relationship. "Make sure you can talk to each other easily and understand what the other person [needs from the relationship]," Nosbisch explains. "That's especially important when you come from two very different areas of expertise."
Teaming up with a competitor worked for Alan Stuart, owner of Stuart Communications Group, an automotive public relations specialist in Farmington Hills, Michigan. He and his marketing partner won a $35,000 public relations contract from a major car manufacturer--a project neither would have been able to snag on his own.
Teaming up provided double marketing power. Stuart has contacts in the automotive industry; his partner has a flair for designing special programs, a service the car manufacturer wanted provided as part of the contract. "My partner never would have known about this opportunity except through me. I needed his skills designing exhibits to get the contract," explains Stuart. "It was a perfect business marriage."
The duo continues to cooperate--rather than compete--to bid on and win other contracts. "We know each other's abilities and limitations, and we trust each other," says Stuart. "That's the basis of a good marketing partnership."
Carla Goodman is a freelance writer in Sacramento, California.
Howdy, Partner
Before you team up with a marketing partner, get the answers to these important questions:
- How well do I know my potential marketing partner?
- Do we have professional chemistry and the same business philosophy?
- Do we have a similar amount of experience running our businesses?
- What resources can I offer my marketing partner, and what can he or she give me?
- If the partnership doesn't work out, can we easily dissolve it?
For more information, consider these resources:
- The Art of Partnering: How to Increase Your Profits and Enjoyment in Business Through Alliance Relationships, by Edwin Richard Rigsbee (Alliance Works, $24.95, 805-371-4636), offers a nuts-and-bolts approach to forming business partnerships.
- Intelligent Business Alliances, by Larraine Segil (Times Business Books, $25, 800-733-3000), explains how to select a partner, create realistic goals and manage the partnership.
- Walk Your Talk: Growing Your Business Faster Through Successful Cross-Promotional Partnerships, by Kare Anderson (Ten Speed Press, $17.95, 415-331-6336), provides strategies for teaming up with other businesses to promote your products or services.
Postcard Power
By Leigh Schindler Powell
Good things come in small packages, and the diminutive postcard is no exception. Not only are they easy and inexpensive to produce, postcards do what bigger marketing missives can't: They get through to even the toughest direct-mail customers.
Once relegated to appointment reminders and changes of address, these smart marketing tools are taking on jobs far larger than their size. Sales messages, invitations, coupons and correspondence adorn postcards as small as
4 inches by 6 inches. These days, every small business with a computer and laser printer can create winning postcards for just pennies apiece.
To integrate postcards into your marketing mix, all you need are mailing lists of customers and prospects. Design your offer with customers in mind. Here's how:
- Headline: Think of your postcard as a miniature billboard--fit the main idea into one short, attention-grabbing sentence, such as "Five shortcuts to greener grass."
- Body copy: Keep it short and simple--only one idea per postcard. If it can't be read in the time it takes to walk back from the mailbox, it's too wordy.
- Call to action: Emphasize the urgency: "Sale ends Tuesday."
- Response: Make it easy for customers to reach you. Include your phone and fax numbersand street and e-mail addresses.
- Design: Remember, it's a tiny billboard--use uncluttered, easy-to-read, clever graphics.
- Postage: Bulk mail is the least expensive, but it requires presorting by ZIP code and mailing a minimum of 200 postcards at a time. Regular first-class rates apply to smaller quantities.
Need help? Check out the book How to Market With Postcards, by Markus Allen (Mailshop USA, $15, 800-618-6050, ext. 9122), or the software program MyProfessionalMarketingMaterials from MySoftware Co. ($79.95, 800-325-3508).
Contact Sources
Complete Consulting, 1817 Trout Run Rd., P.O. Box 511, Decorah, IA 52101, (319) 387-0702
Guaranteed Resumes, (612) 825-7262, http://www.gresumes.com
Stuart Communications Group, 37440 Hills Tech Dr., Farmington Hills, MI 48331, (248) 489-5595